About John
John Duran is a native Angeleno and 36-year resident of West Hollywood. An attorney whose firm is based in West Hollywood, he has practiced law since 1987, focusing on civil rights issues, including HIV/AIDS law, LGBTQ+ rights, medical marijuana, and constitutional law. John earned his Juris Doctor from Western State University College of Law and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from California State University, Long Beach.
John served as a West Hollywood City Councilmember for two decades, from 2001 through 2020, and served multiple terms as Mayor. During his 20 years on the City Council, he became one of the city’s most recognizable leaders. His election was a continuation of his long history of dedicated community service, and his tenure included initiating and co-sponsoring numerous ordinances, resolutions, and other actions that reflected West Hollywood’s innovative identity and helped establish the city as a model for communities across the country. The City of West Hollywood has specifically noted his role in initiating and co-sponsoring legislation reflecting the city’s innovative approach.
John was among the first openly gay elected officials in the United States. Coming from a close-knit Latino family, he was also the first person of color elected to the West Hollywood City Council and, to date, the city’s only Latino Council Member.
Here are some of his more significant accomplishments that greatly benefited the City of West Hollywood, its residents, its business community, and our LGBTQ+ community:
CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY
Long before his election to the City Council, John was active nationally on HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ+ rights. He began practicing HIV/AIDS law in the 1980’s, when relatively few attorneys represented people living with HIV. He represented ACT UP protesters seeking access to HIV treatment and medications, represented Clean Needles Now in Los Angeles, represented medical marijuana patients before Proposition 215, and successfully challenged Los Angeles County over its denial of medication to HIV-positive inmates in county jails.
He also represented Sheriff Deputy Bruce Boland in litigation involving the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department after Boland became one of the first law-enforcement deputies to publicly come out as gay. John was a proponent of the 1993 ballot initiative to establish a West Hollywood Police Department, which narrowly failed but contributed to subsequent police reforms. In 2016, he was elected National Chairman of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), where he advocated for immigration policy and a pathway to citizenship.
LGBTQ+ EQUALITY
John has served on the boards of AIDS Project Los Angeles, the ACLU Foundation Board, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. He co-founded and chaired the LIFE AIDS Lobby from 1987 to 1992 and co-founded ANGLE (Access Now for Gay and Lesbian Equality) in 1989.
He co-founded Equality California in 2000 and served as its Board Chairman through 2008. In West Hollywood, he worked to establish the June Mazer Lesbian Archives at the Werle Building, created the Lesbian Speaker Series, and helped establish an AIDS monument at West Hollywood Park. He also helped establish the permanent transgender rights flag on Santa Monica Boulevard, advocated for transgender sensitivity training within the Sheriff’s Department, and worked to establish a Transgender Advisory Board and gender-neutral restrooms.
HEALTH & FITNESS, ADDICTION, & RECOVERY
John has been a strong proponent for physical and mental health issues. He worked to establish a permanent location for the West Hollywood Alcohol and Drug Recovery Center at 626 N. Robertson Boulevard, converting a former city storage site into a recovery center that serves approximately 10,000 visitors per month. He also led the acquisition of the Log Cabin building in West Hollywood for additional 12-step meeting space and supported increased City funding for alcoholism and drug-addiction programs.
He established and funded sober events, including BOOM and SIZZLE, and organized town halls addressing crystal methamphetamine use. He co-authored the Zero Transmission City effort to expand access to PrEP and reduce HIV transmission. He also advocated for free meningitis vaccinations during a Southern California outbreak and as a Member of the West Hollywood City Council, provided city residents with regular COVID-19 updates beginning in March 2020.
ARTS & CULTURE
During his City Council tenure, John supported increasing the City’s arts budget and helped establish the West Hollywood Chorale. He sang with the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles from 1998 to 2018 and served as its Board Chairman from 2008 to 2018.
He supported development of a central-city arts district and the City’s purchase of the Coast Playhouse for conversion into a 99-seat civic theater. He also supported expanded parking near City Hall to serve nighttime arts and entertainment uses, as well as efforts to both preserve and interpret the history of the Sunset Strip and establish an AIDS monument at West Hollywood Park.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING & TENANTS’ RIGHTS
Before joining the City Council, John volunteered as an attorney at the Coalition for Economic Survival (CES) Legal Clinic, providing free legal assistance to tenants, and served on the Rent Stabilization Commission.
On the City Council, he authored a development moratorium during a period of tenant displacement associated with condominium construction. He advocated for requiring new residential developments to set aside 20 percent of units for low-income housing and supported seismic studies and retrofit planning for vulnerable buildings.
During COVID-19, John supported moratoriums on residential and commercial evictions and a housing grant program providing rent assistance to tenants. He also authored a program providing legal counsel to tenants involved in landlord-tenant disputes and unlawful-detainer proceedings.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
John has maintained a long relationship with the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, with his law practice located in the city for more than 30 years. As a Council Member, he supported local businesses and emphasized the connection between economic activity, local employment and municipal revenues.
During his tenure on the City Council, John worked hard to help the City of West Hollywood maintain its very well-respected AAA bond rating. He assured that the City remained financially balanced during the 2008 recession without employee layoffs or reductions in municipal programs, while continuing to invest in capital projects including a new library, City Council chambers, and restoration of West Hollywood Park.
John also worked on the city’s economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic and has focused on maintaining the strength of the Sunset Strip, Design District, and Santa Monica Boulevard/Boystown business districts.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
John authored the Craftsman Preservation Ordinance protecting historic homes on the Eastside and supported establishing a citywide bungalow district. He cast the deciding vote to preserve the historic “Tara” house at 1343 N. Laurel Avenue.
He also supported a commercial structure inventory to identify and protect historic buildings and businesses along the Sunset Strip and Santa Monica Boulevard, as well as measures addressing oversized residential construction in West Hollywood West and Norma Triangle.
TRANSPORTATION & PARKING
During his years on the City Council, John supported adding parking throughout West Hollywood and was instrumental in creating the West Hollywood PickUp, a free weekend and holiday-evening shuttle service. He also advocated for expanding the service to the Sunset Strip.
John supported construction of the automated parking garage behind City Hall, which tripled the number of parking spaces in the area and received regional and national recognition. He has also advocated for extending Metro rail under Santa Monica Boulevard to connect West Hollywood with Downtown Los Angeles and the Westside.
PUBLIC SAFETY & HOMELESSNESS
Before his election to the City Council, John served on the Public Safety Commission. He supported establishing an independent West Hollywood Police Department and subsequently worked with Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department leadership to address neighborhood safety and community concerns.
John has also worked on homelessness issues, supporting a comprehensive approach that includes low-income housing, substance-abuse treatment and mental-health services. He has supported pairing mental-health professionals with sheriff’s deputies during homeless-related welfare checks and supported CARE Court as a means of connecting people with serious mental illness to treatment, medication and housing.
ANIMAL WELFARE
John authored the first anti-declawing ordinance in the United States, banning the declawing of cats in West Hollywood. He also worked with Council colleagues on measures addressing puppy mills and supported allowing tenants to keep animal companions in their apartments.
He worked with Public Works to expand pet-waste disposal facilities and enforcement and helped lead the creation of dog parks at West Hollywood Park.